Did the FCA just sign the death warrant for trail commission?

Of all the new rules in the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA’s) platform paper, it was its 2016 ‘sunset clause’ that was the most eye-catching. From 6 April 2014, platforms will have to adhere to a ban on rebates on new business. They will then have two years to eradicate any legacy rebates and move clients to an explicit platform charge, agreed with the customer. Newer platforms, which do not rely on rebates as part of their business model, were unequivocal about the effect on fund supermarkets. “If we’d just had pretty much all our revenue cut off from April 2016, I’d be pretty...